IndustrtiALL Global Union‘s textile and garment members from MENA region’s main producer countries Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia and Morocco reported tangible progress in organising and collective bargaining at a meeting at Tunisian capital, Tunis, on 3-4 May 2018.

The affiliates developed further plans for important actions in the textile and garment supply chain.

In Jordan, a new sector-wide agreement that includes improvement in wages and working conditions was signed.

The agreement covers both Jordanian nationals and migrant workers. In close cooperation with IndustriALL, with an objective to strengthening the voice of migrant workers in the sector, the Jordanian affiliate General Trade Union of Workers in Textile Garment & Clothing Industries (JTGCU) is currently building a Migrant Workers’ Union Advisory Committee.

Through negotiations with Employers’ Association and threatening to strike, IndustriALL’s Tunisian affiliate, Fédération Générale du Textile, de l'Habillement, Chaussure et Cuir (FGTHCC-UGTT) achieved a 6 per cent wage increase in 2016 and 2017.

FGTHCC-UGTT is now preparing for the annual negotiations on the wages in the sector aiming at an 8 per cent increase.